MURDER in a public park, the daughter of a jailed mob boss is kidnapped and so the action begins.

An arrest is made and lively courtroom drama ensues

The township of Soweto culminating with an encounter with an enraged Hippopotamus in riverbed

A Perfect Bound Paperback

Rosie Russell - Five shining stars for Posie Pixie Book 1 from "The Whimsy Wood Series."
Author Sarah Hill and illustrator Sarah Mauchline presents an adorable tale called "Posie Pixie and the Copper Kettle" Book 1.
Readers will enjoy rich words, charming drawings, and a story filled with fun and imagination! I am looking forward to more books from the "Whimsy Wood Series" as "Posie Pixie" has won my heart!
Thank you Sarah Hill for allowing me to win this copy through one of your contests!

MURDER IS JUST THE WARNING

10% of the authors royalty from the sale of this book will be donated to conservation charities.

A NOVEL by TERRY HAYWARD

MURDER in a public park, the daughter of a jailed mob boss is kidnapped and so the action begins. All this violence is just to be a warning, and put pressure on, a jailed mobster to prevent him spilling all to the authorities.

The mobsters gardener is arrested for the murder, lively courtroom drama ensues and the lawyer and his private investigator are hired to find the missing child. The search leads to a mob farm on the Highveld near Johannesburg, into the slums of Hillbrow then into the township of Soweto.

This is followed by a mad dash into neighbouring Zimbabwe to rescue the investigators young brother in law from a group of rogue Zimbabwean soldiers involved in rhino horn poaching and reaches its terrifying climax in an encounter with an enraged Hippopotamus in the Limpopo riverbed.

TERRY HAYWARD is a retired Anglican Priest who previously practised law in Durban, South Africa, for 25 years. He is married to Rita and the two now live in New Zealand with their daughter, son in law and two of their grandchildren.

Their son was a game ranger in Zululand for 15 years and married a Canadian who is also deeply into conservation. The family have always had a deep love for conservation and that is where the inspiration for this and Terrys other books stems from.

Terry has written a previous book, Father in Law, and is presently working on his next book.

Excerpt from MURDER IS JUST THE WARNING

.....By mistake and with pure fluke the bullet hit the front left hand tyre of the vehicle. The tyre exploded, and after the harsh crack of my shot sounded surprisingly quiet in that sandy and rock-strewn riverbed. With that the left front of the vehicle dropped and dug deep into the soft sand, and as the bumper caught in the thick sand, it caused the speeding vehicle to somersault.

The Colonel flew out of the jeep through the air, cartwheeling like a shop window mannequin, arms and legs flailing uselessly all over the place. He landed with a sickening thud on the edge of one of the deep pools in the riverbed and bounced. He lay there momentarily stunned, but with his legs feebly splashing in the water and his upper torso firmly lying on the dry ground, he was all but defenseless.

As he lay there, grabbing uselessly at the sand with his outstretched hands, he tried desperately to claw himself out of the water.

A terrible and terrifying commotion erupted in the pool behind him as a submerged, and now totally enraged, bull hippo rose to the surface and charged at this intruder, who was threatening both him and his pod of hippos.

Groggily the man appeared to realise the danger he was in and, feebly screaming in fear, he tried even harder to claw his way up the bank, but it was all to no avail, and too late.

Even the heavily armed policemen, standing no more than a hundred meters away in the riverbed, would not have been quick enough to respond to what happened. The beast churned through the water like a freshly launched torpedo up to the fat man, lying half in half out the pool. As he tried desperately to grab for the pistol on his hip, he moaned pitifully as he realised the danger fast approaching.
The hippo grabbed his back and legs in its cavernous mouth and proceeded to toss him around above its head, like a broken rag doll. As the mans weakening screams of terror resounded across the Limpopo River bed, the huge beast continued to shake the now almost lifeless body in anger. The Colonel really had been determined to die today!

I know now why people so often claim that frightening things appear to happen in slow motion. For a second or two nothing seemed to happen, then all at once everything happened as events slowly started up again and life came back into reality.

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Rosie RussellFive shining stars for Posie Pixie Book 1 from "The Whimsy Wood Series."
Author Sarah Hill and illustrator Sarah Mauchline presents an adorable tale called "Posie Pixie and the Copper Kettle" Book 1.
Readers will enjoy rich words, charming drawings, and a story filled with fun and imagination! I am looking forward to more books from the "Whimsy Wood Series" as "Posie Pixie" has won my heart!
Thank you Sarah Hill for allowing me to win this copy through one of your contests!

DBR BooksWhimsy Wood is a magical and inspiring place where good things happen, and treasures can be found in the oddest of places! Posie Pixie’s unusual ‘finds’ enlightens one to the concept of everything and everyone has a purpose in life. Engaging, whimsical, and endearing, Posie Pixie takes us on another adventure in her enchanted forest Whimsy Wood, to once again capture the heart and true magic of kindness and friendship!

PHILLIP DAVIESAn enchanting cornucopia of welsh legends.Dylan Thomas told me that he loved the fragments that he had been able to read.These tales have captured the mystery and majesty of the Principality.Well done.Dai iawn.

MichaelThe Kalevala, the book that inspired Tolkien to write the Silmarillion, is not for the faint of heart! at 22,975 verses it is truly an Epic Poem. A fantastic translation for any student of finnish culture - the Kalevala translation by JM Crawford is one of the few that attempts to preserve the original finnish metre! A great work, and fast delivery from Abela!

KarlMany people have heard of the Hopi Indians, but few know their history. Written at the turn of the 20th Century, this great book reminded me of a civilisation that is fast disappearing. Abela Publishing were fast and efficient, can't fault them!

AnonymousThe great Incan civilization had a huge affect on the culture of South America, great to read about their tales in this volume! Very fast delivery and easy checkout with Abela! Being able to pay by Paypal was a real plus!

Sam CrossA gateway to the world of Russian myth and legend, a truly interesting (and entertaining) read. The Story of Ivan and the Daughter of the Sun was especially good! Excellent service from Abela, as always.

Gerry O'Donohoereally pleased to get a book of traditional Celtic fairy tales to read to the kids, the book benefits the princes trust too - an added bonus. Payment and delivery were really easy, I would recommend Abela publishing

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